Monday, 6 August 2007

Pining for the Fringe

Still another week before I get to Edinburgh, but there are advantages in this. Not least that I can keep an eye on the early coverage. Which looks like it could be a full-time occupation this year with the broadsheets' online features looking more fulsome than ever before.

Interestingly, the Telegraph's coverage is easily comparable - and benefits from a slightly more user-friendly design with the features mixed in with the reviews, allowing for a slightly more potted read. Of course, being the Telegraph, it also offers some excellent examples of philistine harrumphing and a picture of Stewart Lee (accompanying a charming interview) labelled "Stewart Lee studied English Literature at Oxford University" like a justification to the paper's normal constituency for its inclusion ("Why's this chap here, eh? Studied at Oxford, did he? Capital fellow, then. Spendid. Carry on...").

And of course the Fringe wouldn't be the Fringe without Ian Shuttleworth from the Financial Times seeing more shows than all the other critics put together in his frankly masochistic, Salo-like efforts to see every damn thing out there.

7 comments:

Definitely an advantage to hang on until after the first week. Our own coverage started yesterday (needing to take advantage of the 2 for 1 ticket offers!) but perhaps because of the rain, Edinburgh just didn't feel like it was quite 'up for it' yet. I'm sure by the time you arrive things will be more uo and running, and like you say, after poor reviews you may be able to score a few shows off your 'to see' list.

I guess it's a double edged sword - yes, I expect that the aggregate reviews on some shows will pretty much save me some effort - but at the same time while I'm playing catch-up I won't be discovering anything for myself. Ho hum.

Back in Edinburgh today and I can confirm that not only was it pleasantly sunny, but the Fringe is definitely now up to speed with the expected level of flyering on the Royal Mile, complete overload of tartan-tat, and the ridiculously inflated prices for food/drinks. Gotta love it...

V flattering, but Lyn Gardner's show totals regularly knock mine into a cocked hat. Mind you, these days she has Maxie Szalwinska and her own daughter as scouts, whereas I covered the entire waterfront single-handedly. A total of 103 isn't so impressive, and when you discount duplicates (three editions of the comedians' quiz show We Want Answers!, going back to The Table) and a side-trip to bath and Stratford, it's only 94 different Edinburgh shows actually seen.

D'oh! Back mere hours, and already the memory fades and I assume the whole world is set up like "The Prisoner"...

I should really have remembered, given that a) I kept going back to it and b) Alex Horne (he's Horney, Horney, Horney) had, of course, a PowerPoint animation of a line of precisely such weeny dancers...